How to Design Web Pages for Businesses

Building the Website

1). Open your preferred HTML or text editor. If you are not familiar with HTML or text editors, a simple text editor such as Notepad will suffice and may even help you learn. Every element must be typed by hand, forcing you to remember the elements of HTML documents. An HTML editor will make typing HTML quicker and easier.

2). Include the necessary tags (<html>, <head>, <body> and <title> tags), as well as any additional elements necessary for your page (<p> creates paragraphs, <a> creates links and <img> includes images). Each opening tag should be complemented with a closing tag. For example, type the following into your text editor:

<html>

<head>

<title>My Web Page</title>

</head>

<body>

<h1>My First Heading</h1>

<p>Write text in this section to create a paragraph.</p>

<a href="/links/?u=http://www.example.com">This is a link to an example page on the web.</a>

<p>Below is a small picture.</p>

<img src="a_picture.jpg" />

</body>

</html>

3). Create a more aesthetically pleasing webpage by including style. Text size and alignment and color (among other things) can be altered by including "style=" in the opening tags of your HTML document, followed by the desired style. Background color and paragraph text font and color have been modified by including the "style" attribute in the following example:

<html>

<head>

<title>My Web Page</title>

</head>

<body style="background-color:blue">

<h1>My First Heading</h1>

<p style="font-family:Sans; color:gray; font-size:1.3em;">Use this section to create a paragraphs.</p>

<a href="/links/?u=http://www.example.com">This is a link to an external Web page.</a>

<p>Below is a small picture. The photo should be saved in the same directory as the HTML document is saved in, or pointed to the appropriate directory or folder (for example, "photos/beach.jpg").</p>

Pages to Include

1). Create a homepage for your website. This will probably be the first page your visitors see, so use it to strengthen your brand, welcome your guests and provide an intuitive way to view the rest of the site. Include a logo and use your company's colors, provide a short description of your business and what you do (use lots of keywords that people are likely to search in finding a website offering your services) and provide links to other parts of your site.

2). Create an "About Us" section for your website. This page will give visitors a better idea of what your company does. Include a short history of your company (your background), describe your employees, your core values and the reasons you are the best at what you do.

3). Provide information about your services or products on a separate page of your website. Include well-composed, well-lit photographs of your products, though you need not hire a professional. Some pictures are better than none at all.

4). Provide contact information on every page, including your full address, phone number and email. Additionally, create a "Contact Us" page that expands on this information, including hours of operation and a map to your physical business location.

Other Considerations

1). Create your webpages for viewers but keep Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in mind when creating your website. Create a unique, descriptive title for each webpage. Use Flash minimally and don't use JavaScript to provide links to other pages. Use keywords throughout the text of your website that are likely to be searched. Link to other resources (e.g., if you sell fresh roasted coffee beans, provide links to companies that sell coffee-making equipment and coffee mugs). If these companies link back to you, your search engine results will improve.

2). Use small images and minimal animation on your website for faster page loads. Visitors rarely wait more that about 7 seconds for a page to load before moving on, so including large, high quality images is not generally a good idea. Optimize all photographs by saving them in the JPEG file format and reduce their quality in a program such as Photoshop (Windows and Mac), Corel Digital Studio (Windows and Mac) or Gimp (free and available for Mac, Windows and Linux). In Gimp, click "Save As" under the "File" menu, and select the ".jpg" file format. After clicking "Save," you will be able to reduce the image quality.

3). Include a blog in your website with tips related to the service you offer. For example, if you own a landscaping business, include tips for pruning and maintaining a landscape even though you offer these services. As people link to your blog from other websites, your popularity and credibility will grow. Also, more people will be likely to do business with a company that is helpful and willing to give good advice.